Course developers say that given how the media have the power to influence many aspects of our lives, from where we live to what we buy to how we think, it is critical that we as media consumers understand the meaning behind the messages in news, advertising and other sources, said Philina Richardson at Evans Library, who will be a course instructor with Cheryl Davis, Chelsea Stripling and visiting librarian Wanda Perez.

“Course attendees will learn how to navigate the news and become media savvy, able to differentiate between fact and fiction in a very crowded and chaotic news landscape,” said Sohair Wastawy, dean of libraries at Florida Tech.

Understanding Media is the second massive, open, online course, or MOOC, Evans Library has offered. Its first, 2014’s Mastering Academic Research, drew more than 1,600 registrants from around the world.